TOKYO: Japanese dot.com giant Livedoor has been hit with the largest-ever penalty in the country's corporate history for violating securities laws.

The Tokyo District Court fined the business ¥280 million ($2.3m; €1.7m; £1.2m) and its subsidiary Livedoor Marketing ¥40m, the latest twist in a case that has led to seven convictions for former executives and accountants.

In imposing the fine, the court said the crime at Livedoor, which involved manipulating earnings, was "systematic" in its attempts to mislead individual investors, and the business had failed to live to up to its responsibility as a listed company.

Livedoor's maverick founder Takafumi Horie has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for his part in the scandal [WARC News: 19-Mar-07] which has shocked and enthralled the country since it broke in January 2006

Data sourced from Wall Street Journal Online; additional content by WARC staff